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ST. HILDA 
AND OTHER POEMS 



ST. HILDA 



OTHER POEMS 



f% 



FREDERICK W. BECKER 




THE GRAFTON PRESS 

NEW YORK 



T5 -Ji"^ ^ 




DEC I i^m 

iCmsS Ct. XXc Not 

\ COPY B. 

lrg*'^«g^ . i . II I ■ 



Copyright ig04 
by the Grafton Press 



CONTENTS 



St. Hilda . . . 

/. The Minstrel 
II. The Sleeping Har 
III. The Wanderer 
VI. The Awakening 

V. St. Hilda . 
When She Comes 
The Tell-Tale Spring 
The Star of My Loving 
At the Gates of Pearl 
In the Moonlight 
The Siren s Repulse 
The Deceitful Daisy 
The South-Winds Say 
The Lovers' Mirage 

o 

To Eunice 

Come 

Lea ..... 

The Toiler s Dream 
When Alice Came . 
My Captain . 
To April' s Brook 



Page 

9 

9 
II 

15 

15 
16 

19 
20 

21 

23 

24 

25 

28 

29 

31 

36 
38 
39 
41 

44 
46 

51 



Digitized by tine Internet Arciiive 
in 2011 witii funding from 
Tine Library of Congress 



littp://www.arcliive.org/details/stliildaotlierpoemOObeck 



ST. HILDA 
AND OTHER POEMS 



St, Hilda 



I. The Minstrel 

THE way-side turf was brightly gemmed 
With Springtime's fairest stars; 
The buds to durance long condemned 
Had burst their prison bars. 

The song of bird, the hum of bee, 

Glad welcome- gave to Spring; 
The earth and sky joined heartily, 

And every living thing. 

Beside the way a Minstrel gray 

Sang merry songs of love; 
And some, perhaps, took wing that day, 

O'er distant seas to rove. 

And others are resounding yet, 

Adown the paths of Time; 
And those who hear them ne'er forget 

The beauties of their rhyme. 

[9 ] 



Beside the Minstrel where he knelt 
Within that woodland bower, 

There lay a Harp that ne'er had felt 
The Master's magic power. 

And as his songs filled brake and wold 

With sweetest echoings, 
The Minstrel took the Harp of Gold 

And touched its tensioned strings. 

He swept them with his cunning sweep; 

He tried his utmost skill; 
But mute, like Innocence asleep, 

They answered not his will. 

Again, again, with soulful might, 
He smote each separate chord; 

They trembled, as if with affright, 
Yet disobeyed their lord. 

"Upon this Harp there is a spell," 
The wondering Harper cried; 

"On many have I played and well, 
Yet none has me defied. 

[10] 



"I leave thee here, thou Harp so cold, 
Amono;st the weeds and fjrass. 

Nor tender arms shall thee enfold. 
Till this has come to pass: 

"Until upon some distant day, 

Though many years it be, 
There comes adown this winding way, 

A heart attuned to thee." 

IL The Sleeping Harp 

The wild rose cried, "Awake! Awake! 

And listen to my song; 
Then come, my Love, thy silence break, 

Why sleepest thou so long ? 

"My Love, arise, confide in me 

And I will be thy bride; 
O Love, awake! abide with me 

Till ebbs life's fevered tide." 

The gentle lily, drooping low. 

Demurely kept apart; 
She envied not the wanton's glow 

Nor fickleness of heart. 
[II] 



She could but sigh, "If thou wilt sleep, 
Then lie within this breast, 

And tender vigils will I keep, 
Till ended be thy rest." 

The humming bird, bold brigand free, 

With booty-laden soul. 
Droned, "Come with me and stealthily, 

O'er flowery fields we'll troll. 

"And buds so fair and buds so rare. 

We'll loot along the way; 
And blossoms bright and debonair 

Will lure us on to stay, 

"Till fainting Phoebus falls asleep. 

Within his crimson bed. 
And dusky curtains, trailing deep. 

Enshroud his dying head. 

"And where the shadows thickly fall, 
We'll hide on mossy banks. 

And hearken for the Satyrs' call 
To join them in their pranks." 

[12] 



The Harp slept on, nor note nor sound, 

Was heard for many a year; 
And dead leaves strewed the silent mound, 

And weeds and grasses sear. 

III. The Wanderer 

The clouds hung low in the skies one day — 
The skies that once were bright — 

And some were black and some were gray, 
And none were lined with light. 

Peculiar phantoms crept between 

Those ever-shifting walls. 
Like gliding monks at a midnight scene 

Within their ghostly halls. 

Below, dim, misty spirits dank 

Went trailing noiselessly, 
From tree to tree and bank to bank, 

In endless phantasy. 

Anon some tremulous Shape of Mist, 
Recoiled with wavering grace. 

When uncouth winds its garments kissed, 
Or fanned its ashen face. 
[13] 



From out the cloud of spectres weird, 

Upon that dark noontide, 
A poor and lowly maid appeared, 

And Sorrow walked beside. 

Down the path with silent tread, 

The Wanderer passed along; 
She minded not the clouds o'erhead. 

Nor feared the ghostly throng. 

She slowly sank upon the ground, 

Forsaken to her doom, 
Beside the silent, leaf-strewn mound, 

Beside the Harp's cold tomb. 

No faith on earth, no hope of Heaven, 

Was writ upon that face; 
She longed for peace that ne'er was given — 

The clod her resting-place. 

She clasped her hands in mute despair 

And tears fell warm and fast 
Down pallid face, through curtaining hair; 

For Life seemed dead and past. 
[14] 



IV. The Awakening 

Lo! the air was softly stirred, 

As if by unseen wings; 
And on the breeze was faintly heard 

Uncertain whisperings. 

Like echoes from those sunnier cKmes 
Where flowed Life's happy streams, 

Or faintly tinkling fairy chimes 
Heard long ago in dreams. 

Then plainer fell the melody 

Upon that startled ear; 
Upon her waiting tremblingly, 

In wonder, awe, and fear. 

And louder grew those wondrous notes. 
Clearer — clearer — clearer , 

Like carols from a thousand throats, 
Nearer — nearer — nearer. 

And that swelling music filled her. 
With hopes gone long before; 

And that welling music thrilled her 
Quivering heart-strings o'er and o'er. 

[15] 



Then softly stole the mists away, 
Dim spirits robed in white; 

And the shadows — phantoms gowned in gray- 
Like shades of dying night. 

And the Seasons joined with gladness 

In the chorus that was borne 
On the wings that swept the sadness, 

From that poor heart forlorn. 

And Trust, like incense from On High, 

Took her in close embrace; 
And Love on pinions white drew nigh 

And kissed that upturned face. 

V. St. Hilda 

"She softly comes in beauty fair. 

With lilies on her breast; 
And silver poppies in her hair, — 

To woo the world to rest. 

"Where'er she goes the sunshine flows 

In broad and golden streams; 
And every darkling heaven glows 

With her bright and beauteous beams. 
[i6] 



"And when she smiles rich music falls 

In showers of delight; 
Like music from the lark that calls 

Its fellow in his Right. 

"Upon the tender heart that breaks 

She pours her healing balm; 
Unto the restless soul that wakes 

She whispers peace and calm. 

"She draws the weary sister near 

And tells of love and joy, 
For her who one repentant tear 

Lets fall in Hope's employ. 

"Within the sad and lonely home 
She comforts those who weep, 

And reads from out Life's wondrous tome: 
'They sorrow not who sleep.' 

"She plucks the thorn from out the road 

That weary feet must plod; 
And lifts for heavy hands the load 

That falls beside the sod." 

[^7] 



And this was writ in glowing line 
Upon a new-made page 

Within the dusty Book of Time — 
To shine from age to age. 



[i8] 



WHEN SHE COMES 

IN the coming of the dawning, 
Like the sunshine from above 
That floods the golden morning, 
Thou shalt come, my sweetest Love. 

In the coming of the noontide. 
When all nature sings with glee. 

My heart shall sing of thee, its Bride, 
Love's sweetest melody. 

In the coming of the twilight. 
With its shadows o'er the land, 

Love's star shall make our pathway bright. 
As we journey hand in hand. 



[19] 



THE TELL-TALE SPRING 

N a quiet, restful valley, 
Where all care is laid away. 
And the zephyrs gently dally 
With the Hlies all the day, 

Where the daisies and the clover 

Are a-basking in the sun, 
And the cricket keeps his cover 

Till his evening song's begun, 

Bubbles up a crystal fountain — 
Midst the buttercups all gold — 

From the depths of yonder mountain: 
Bringing joy and joy untold. 

By this dear spring she is kneeling; 

And the shadows are made light 
By a face that in vain's concealing 

What is writ in eyes so bright. 

And I, stooping there above her, 
Mirrored in the spring quite plain. 

Read, what I would e'en discover, 
That my love is not in vain. 

[20] 



THE STAR OF MY LOVING 

THE Star of my Loving is set in the gloam- 
ings 
It shone for a moment, to die in the West; 
And my soul it is roving — in darkness 'tis 
roaming — 
And from its fierce torment craves respite 
and rest. 

The Sun of my Longing is sunk o'er the moun- 
tain, 
Hath left my heart dreary, hath left it forlorn; 
Like the wanderer turning from the ne'er-flow- 
ing fountain, 
Who of life is a-weary, who would go to his 
bourne. 

The Wings of my Spirit are flown to the sea- 
ward; 
Are battling the elements — the illimitable 
tide — 
And my love that was infinite, true, never way- 
ward. 
In spotless habiliments would have gowned 
thee my Bride. 

[21] 



Then I'll quaff the dark potion, from the em- 
bittered chalice, 
Till my spirit be free on the Stygian shore; 
And my heart with emotion, for thee, my lost 
Alice — 
That hath beat but for thee — shall beat 
nevermore. 



[22] 



AT THE GATES OF PEARL 

AT the Gates of Pearl a Peri stood — 
The Gates to a better land — 
And the sun shone down in a golden flood 
On an earnest, eager band. 

"By what token," the Peri said, 
"O would'st thou enter here?" 

As his gaze fell on an humble maid. 
In whose eye — for joy — a tear. 

"A Lover have I," the maiden said, 

"Who all for love of me, 
Evil and sin aside hath laid; 

That's why we come to thee." 

Then spake the youth at the maiden's side: 

"My Love is true and good, 
And for love of me hath sanctified 
Her purest womanhood." 

"O enter ye!" the Peri cried, 

"All love like this should be;" 
And the Gates of Pearl were opened wide - 

To you, my Love, and me. 
[23] 



IN THE MOONLIGHT 

ON my soul there is painted, in colors of 
gladness, 
A face unacquainted with grief or with sad- 
ness; 
With trust overflowing, with love sweetly 

beaming, 
In the twilight's faint glowing; in the star- 
light's bright gleaming. 

In my breast there is graven an image enduring; 
My heart is its haven; my life is its mooring; 
'Twas chiselled in brightness, in the moonbeam's 

soft rays; 
'Twill my path fill with lightness when dark 

be the days. 



24] 



THE SIREN'S REPULSE 

"^/"^^OME, thou soul with sorrow weighted! 
V^ Thou shalt find eternal rest 
In these arms with solace freighted; 
In these arms then sleep till sated; 

Come and end thy weary quest! 

In these arms then be caressed. 

"In this bosom be thy pillow; 

Thou shalt find it tender, true, 
Sympathetic as yon willow 
Weeping o'er some earthy billow, 

Softly with the falling dew; 

Come, my Love, thy youth renew! 

"Lilies fair shall be thy cover, 

Spun on warp of softest green; 
Fairer than yon stars that hover 
For a time — then sink forever — 
Stars upon an emerald sheen; 
Lily-stars spread by thy Queen. 

"Songs of love shall be the chorus; 
Songs of love and minstrelsy, 
[25] 



Sung by Nymphs who shall adore us, 
While fair Sprites shall trip before us — 
Song and dance and revelry — 
Heart and soul Love's symphony. 

"Wouldst thy soul from love-scenes wander! 

Shouldst thy soul crave loud acclaim! 
Martial strains in torrent thunder 
Shall be thine, thine without number; 

Echoes of my hero's fame — 

Echoing far my hero's name. 

"Turn thine eyes from yonder crescent, 
Flaunting faithless rays and cold; 
Turn thine eyes to mine, liquescent 
With the tears of love, quiescent. 
Till thou cam'st like Knight of Old: 
Till thou cam'st my love to hold." 

"Those rays that on me are beaming 
Beam on her who far away — 
Beam on her who now lies dreaming — 
Her whose heart with love is teeming 
For a wanderer gone astray; 
For this lone soul held at bay. 
[26] 



Then by that Celestial token 

Sending hope from yonder sky — 
By that promise I have spoken 
Love for her shall keep unbroken! 
I abjure thee — thee deny! 
I abhor thee and defy!" 



[27] 



THE DECEITFUL DAISY 

Y heart saith that he loves me; 
This flower saith not so: 
Then shall I b'lieve my fancy, 
Or this white and golden blow ? 



My spirit is in travail, 

Like waves on a troubled sea, 
When I this bloom unravel 

And it saith he loves not me. 

But away, deceitful flower! 

Nor will I trust thee more — 
For see! towards yonder bower, 

My Love hastes as of yore. 

He will clasp me to his bosom, 
On my lips will print a kiss; 

Then away, thou falsest blossom! 
Would'st thou deny me this ? 



[28] 



THE SOUTH-WINDS SAY 

^HE South-winds say — "Delay! Delay!" 
The soft winds say — "O stay! O stay! 
And be thou lulled as we will; 
Then go not forth to the dreary North, 
Where the winds and the hearts are chill! 

"And we will wreathe, as we softly breathe — 
Yes! we will wreathe and with Poppies sheathe 

Thy soul in Celestial ease; 
Then go not forth to the dreary North, 

By the dark and the storm-swept seas! 

"'Neath cerulean skies love's emblem lies; 
To empyreal skies love's spirit flies. 

To roam in ethereal bliss: 
Then go not forth to the dreary North, 

W^hen in South-land love is like this!" 

"'Neath Northern skies, my Paradise; 
Towards Northern skies, my spirit flies. 

To dwell with an Angel bright; 
In the twilight's falling my Love is calling; 

And my Love is my soul's pure light. 
[29] 



"Then I must av/ay, nor can delay! 
I must away, nor another day, 

From the bosom of my Love abide! 
In the twlHght's falling my Love is calling; 

And my Love is my Life's sweet bride. 

"My sweetheart, I come! no more to roam; 
My darling I come to thy Northern home. 

Where thy love makes all skies blue; 
For in the twilight's falling I hear thee calling 

*0h, come to this heart so true!'" 



[30] 



THE LOVERS' MIRAGE 

lY the shadows of the minaretted-city's 
marble gate, 

'Neath the gently-nodding branches of the pur- 
ple-fruited date, 

'Mid the softly-murm'ring echoes of the foun- 
tain's silver rill, 

Where the sweetly-scented lotus-perfumed 
zephyrs play at will, 

Sits a maiden watching, waiting, gazing fondly 
o'er the sands; 

Sits a maiden patient, praying for her Love from 
distant lands: 

"O Allah be good, and Allah be kind. 

And shield my lord from the scorching wind." 

When, with face aglow with rapture, the maid 
with gladsome cry. 

Where, on the far horizon, blends burning sand 
and sky, 

A silhouetted form beholds with eager out- 
stretched arm: 

"O Allah be praised! it is my lord, returned safe 
from harm! 

[31] 



Then will I in this paradise his safe return 

prepare; 
With sweet acacia blossoms deck my scented, 

raven hair; 
Upon my amber-tinted breast shall sleep the 

lotus bloom; 
Thus greet my lord with joyousness and sweetest 

of perfume. 

"But see! My eye deceiveth me; his step doth 

not draw nigh; 
Wait! My lord, on wings of love to thy true 

side I Ry, 
With wine of milk from thy good steed and 

aromatics choice, 
So shall thy fainting heart and soul with mine, 

my lord, rejoice." 

Forgetful of the scorching wind and of the burn- 
ing waste, 

Like the swift gazelle she speeds in fear-oblivious 
haste, 

One wish alone beats in her heart, one wish 
gleams in her eye, 

To greet her lord in sweet embrace or with him 
go to die. 

[32] 



"My lord, O come! My heart grows faint; 

my lord, O come! I fall; 
Here by this parched rivulet, 'neath this dis- 

m.antled wall, 
Where in those fruitful days agone there purled 

a stream so rife, 
I lay me down in weariness; lay down for thee 

my life." 

On the desert's flaming bosom like a fieiy expanse, 
'Mid the tesseilating sepulchres of fated caravans, 
In the wake of the sirocco swirling on in demon 

blast. 
By the long-forsaken fountain that for aye hath 

flowed its last, 
Stands an Arab, looking, longing, gazing fondly 

towards the East; 
Stands an Arab panting, pining from his load 

to be surceast; 
To Allah he prayed, for Allah is great: 
"O guard my maid at the marble gate!" 

When lo! He looks with anxious gaze and sees, 

with throbbing heart, 
Away upon the billows red where grove and 

desert part, 

[33] 



A vision fair; a vision bright; w^ith eager out- 
stretched arm, 

"O Allah, shield yon faithful maid, else she do 
suffer harm! 

"Return to thy abiding-place; return, my own 

sweet maid. 
And tarry thou, till I do come, beneath the palm 

tree's shade; 
And await thy lord with open arms by the 

laughing fountain-side. 
Where of the lotus fruit we'll eat till the Gates 

of Joy ope' wide!" 

Vanished is the vision bright, oh, buried is the form 
Beneath the desert's cerement; the desert's 

yellow storm. 
"Be brave, my own sweet maid, be brave, for 

see, I come! I come! 
To lay me by thy side to die or safely bear thee 

home. 

"Awake! My very soul, awake! Awake, my 

own dear Heart! 
For see, on wings of love I've come, from thee no 

more to part! 

[34] 



Awake! Light of my Life, awake! — Allah! I 

fall — I faint—" 
And the fiendish winds in ghoulish glee but 

mocked the sad complaint. 



In the swiftly falling shadows of the Libyan 

twilight, 
Neath the sable-draped mantle of the dusky 

Queen of Night, 
In the solemn, silent haven of the desert's fitting 

tomb. 
Where lies buried grief and sorrow deep as 

Earth's maternal womb, 
Sleeps an Houri; sleeps a Mah'med;in Celestial 

pose and mould; 
Sleeps a Maiden and her Lover, clasped in arms 

of bronze and gold; 
Nevermore will sit the Maiden gazing fondly 

o'er the sands, 
Nevermore will come the Lover, for his own, 

from distant lands; 
For Allah was stern, though Allah was nigh, 
And His heart did turn from the Lovers' cry. 

[35] 



TO EUNICE 

E welcome thee, fair Eunice, 
The fairest in the land, 
With hearts that e'er to thee are bound 

By pure affection's band; 
We welcome thee in joyousness, 
And greet with gladsome hand. 

When they took thee, fairest Eunice, 
They robbed us of the light 

That beamed from orbs the truest 
And turned our day to night; 

A night bereft of moon and stars — 
Nor e'en a glimmer bright. 

But see, our fairest Eunice! 

In the East the dawn doth break; 
And the gloomy shadows of the night, 

Now speedy wings do take. 
And with songs of joyousness the birds 

A newborn day awake. 

Then w^elcome, fairest Eunice, 
And thrice welcome be our meed; 

[36] 



And welcome to these loyal hearts, 
That never more shall bleed; 

For thou art with us once again — 
What more doth true hearts need ? 



[37 



COME 

IN my breast thou did'st find a fountain 
As pure as the sparkHng dew, 
That gladdens the field and the mountain, 
Wan nature and life to renew. 

Thou foundest what none e'er discovered, 
In this heart, in its solitude old; 

And 'twas thy warm love that uncovered 
This fount of its frost and its cold. 

Thou did'st revel in its bounteous flowing. 
Like the nymphs at sport in the sea. 

In whose tresses the sunbeams are glowing. 
And the zephyrs are dancing in glee. 

Then the boreal winds came blowing, 
And they chilled the stream of my love; 

But they could not fetter its flowing 

At its source in my heart, though they strove. 

Should'st thou of thy life become weary, 
Should'st thou for pure love be athirst, 

Then come! when forsaken and dreary, 
And drink at this fount as at first. 

[38] 



LEA 

LEA came when midnight's mourning 
Fringed with gloomy shadows dread, 
Shrouded every once-adorning 

Star, that it from Heaven fled; 
While the chill winds yet were moaning; 
While my heart in bonds lay groaning; 
Dirges was my soul intoning 

For the hopes that there lay dead. 

Lea, I did name that maiden 
When she came, long, long; ago. 

When with tears the skies were laden 
Till the clouds did overflow. 

Tender was her gladsome greeting. 

Whispering, "Sorrows shall be fleeting; 

Bright days shall be yours through meeting 
Lea, on your night of woe." 

Thus the saintly Angels sent her 

To me on that starless night; 
Much those luminous Angels lent her 

Spirit of their love and light, 
That she came in brightness gleaming; 
So she came with beauty beaming; 
Lea came my life redeeming 

From its Winter's withering blight. 

[39] 



Ever at that altar kneeling, 

Votive incense offering there — 

Incense sweetly upward stealing 
Mingled with this lover's prayer: 

May our love be, ye supernal 

Fates who rule in realms eternal. 

Ever fragrant as the vernal 

Bloom that burthens Carmel's air. 



[40] 



THE TOILER'S DREAM 

I HEAR the great cathedral bells! 
And from the blessed chime there wells 
A note of joy and peace. 
And from their golden-tongued throats, 
A melody to Heaven floats 
That tells of pain's surcease. 

And as the cadences arise, 

Like sweetest incense, to the skies, 

My soul in rapture waits; 
For to the echoes of the chime 
Come wafted downward notes sublime. 

From out the Golden Gates. 

And I hear the angels singing, 
As my spirit, swiftly winging, 

Soars to realms above; 
And I hear a song in Glory, 
That tells a new, new story — 

That tells of endless love. 

And the angels come to meet me, 
And with smiles the angels greet me, 
In the New Jerusalem. 
[41] 



And the love I there see beaming 
Is the brightest jewel gleaming 
In the Savior's diadem. 



Oh, horror! What this brazen din, 
That, v?ith the gray dawn creeping in, 

Fills heart and soul with gloom! 
It is that hollow, mocking clang 
That ever down the ages rang, 

That tolled the slave to doom. 

Ah me! 'Twas but a vision brief 
That took me from this world of grief 

To realms of brightest life. 
'Twas ever thus these weary years. 
That dreamland smiles gave way to tears 

Of earth's hard toil and strife. 

Oft through the vigils of the night. 

My soul would fain have taken flight — 

Have fled this aching mold. 
But with the morn, that doleful bell 
Repeats the mandate I know well, 

To meet the world so cold. 
[42] 



With heart and soul devoid of trust, 
A sacrifice to mammon-lust, 

I go with halting feet, 
And join the listless, weary throng 
That struggles aimlessly along 

To toil in yonder street. 



[43] 



WHEN ALICE CAME 

'^\7"OU came to me, Alice, in the budding of 

1 springtime; 
When April's soft tear-drops were dried by 

May's sunshine; 
When all nature was throbbing to burst from 

her prison. 
And Love from his wintery couch had but 
risen. 

'Your eyeSjO my sweetheart, were springtime's 

best flowers; 
Like violets bathing in April's pure showers; 
Or dewdrops a-gleaming, like stars that were 

riven 
To shine here on earth and make this, Love, 

my heaven. 

'Your lips like the coral ? O never! no, never! 
Like pinkest of rosebuds ? Ah, ever! yes, ever! 
With warmth overladen and bursting with 

fragrance, 
And quivering, trembling, to love's sweetest 
cadence. 

[44] 



LofC. 



"On my cheek there was wafted — methought 

it was summer — 
Warm zephyrs — Pray, April, since when are 

you warmer 
Than June, with its roses and sunshine and 

glory ? 
Quoth April quite naively, 'It is the old 

story.'" 



[45] 



MY CAPTAIN 

Y Jack was my good captain, 
And I my captain's mate; 
And calmly we were sailing 
To gain the Westward Gate. 



No need had we of compass, 
Nor need of mariner's chart, 

For the course that we were steering 
We both knew well by heart. 

The sky was clear and cloudless — 
As fair as sky could be — 

And placid was the bosom 
Of that, our summer sea. 

The sun high in the zenith 

Smiled with the laughing tide; 

And spangled every ripple. 

Like the gown of a gypsy bride. 

No thought had we of danger, 
Nor feared we aught the storm 

That ever follows sunshine, 
As follows night the morn. 

[46] 



We sighed but with the breezes 
That drove our bark along, 

And softly joined their chorus, 

Humming through shrouds their son^ 

When lo! from out the Northward, 

A mighty storm did blow; 
And darkness filled the Heavens, 

And hid the sun's bright glow. 

Like mountains were the billows; 

Dark valleys lay between; 
Our bark, like one sore-wounded. 

Did stagger and careen. 

When with a parting fury. 

The hurricane had passed, 
And I found myself awaking 

'Mid the wreckage of the mast, 

I saw engulfed my captain. 

Beneath the foamy track; 
And the parting winds brought to me 

This message from my Jack: 

[47] 



"Keep true the course you're steering, 
My own, my faithful mate, 

And in the night-shades' falling 

You will make the Westward Gate. 

"And o'er the waters eleamino; 

You will see the harbor light; 
And find your captain waiting, 

Through every watch of night." 

O'er many a sea of glory. 

By many a coral strand, 
Past happy, lithesome mermen 

With smile and beckoning hand, 

By many a sun-kissed island, 

Through many a perfumed breeze; 

Yet I heeded not their temptings 
To rest in flowery ease. 

With song and jest and laughter. 
Full many a crew sailed by; 

Nor cared I for their pleasures, 
Nor heaved one envious sigh. 
[48] 



I kept the course I promised 
And bravely held the helm, 

And steered my bark by dangers 
Which others did o'erwhelm. 

And now the shadows deepen; 

The sun to sleep has gone; 
My heart now truly tells me 

My voyaging is done. 

Lo! Now I see a glimmer — 
The harbor light I see! 

Holy, Heavenly beacon 

I long have watched for thee! 

1 hear you call, my captain! 
I see your face full well; 

I knew that you would greet me, 
When night-shades round me fell. 

For, captain, O my captain, 
I kept the course so true! 

For, captain, O my captain, 
I longed to be with you! 

[49] 



And now, with you, my captain, 
Within this Westward Gate, 

I anchor here forever — 

Your own, your faithful mate. 



[50] 



TO APRIL'S BROOK 

LIKE a minnesinger's heart-sung lay 
That is wafted down from a bygone day, 
Your song shall echo — echo — echo — 
Until the stars forget to glow. 

A song of love with trust entwined; 
A melody of hope combined 
With faith, and sweetest sympathy 
For those who weep on bended knee. 

Then let your music loud resound 
As down your rocky bed you bound, 
And tell faint hearts that drooping lie 
You bring them life — they shall not die. 

And as o'er lea you wend your way, 

Sing soft a soothing roundelay; 

And on your bosom — to the seas 

Bear thou the tears — bring thou heart's-ease. 

Then hurry on! Delay no more! 
By castle gate, past cottage door, 
Let this then be your one refrain: 
To aching hearts love comes again. 

[51] 



DEC 1 1904i 



